SCOUTS KICK OFF FUND RAISER

John Mehner, Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce president, learned that teasing the "Mad Hungarian" brings retribution.

Hrabosky, the Mad Hungarian of 1970s St. Louis baseball Cardinals fame, helped kick off the annual Friends of Scouting fund-raising campaign Thursday at Drury Lodge.

Next week Isaac Bruce, wide receiver with the St. Louis Rams, is scheduled to be in Cape Girardeau to add momentum to the campaign. The Boy Scouts Shawnee Council hopes to raise $50,000 in the next month.

"There are no cheap shots or no rules that apply to the Mad Hungarian," Hrabosky said. He called Mehner up to the front and pitched a baseball at him, then called on Mehner to re-enact Hrabosky's famous pre-pitch preparation.

"That was mental preparation," Hrabosky said. "A mental scouting report. I went through the pitch mentally and tried to follow through physically."

Advice, he said, that might serve the fund-raising campaign well.

Hrabosky said he was a Boy Scout as a youngster in California but didn't stay in long. "I always regretted that I didn't go further," he said.

Hrabosky also failed to make three Little League teams and the junior high baseball team.

"I was in a community that was interested in sending a team to Williamsport, not in exposing kids to the great game of baseball," he said.

Hrabosky first pitched baseball as a senior in high school. He was pitching in the major league at age 20. His 13-year career included over 100 saves, and he was named Fireman of the Year in 1975, an award given to the top relief pitcher.

He currently is a St. Louis broadcaster, providing expert commentary on the St. Louis Cardinals.

"I think it would have been so much easier if I had the foundation of scouting."

Scouts and professional athletes have lots in common, Hrabosky said.

"There's pride in the uniform," he said, "and the ability to communicate and work with teammates. You set goals and work toward those goals."

Professional athletes have a responsibility to become involved in their communities, he said. Scouts learn "not only to care for themselves but also become very responsible and caring of their communities," he said.

Then in a crowd sprinkled with St. Louis Cardinals jerseys and jackets, Hrabosky accused Mehner of being a Chicago Cubs fan.

Since the last time the Cubs were world champions, four states have been admitted to the union, the NFL was formed, television was invented, radio was invented and Haley's Comet has passed the Earth -- twice.

In that same time, the St. Louis Cardinals have won 15 National League titles and nine World Series.

Hrabosky expressed confidence in the 1999 Cardinals team, with players like Mark McGwire and J.D. Drew. "As long as they stay healthy, we should have a great season," he said.